Danger Days, an account of events
by AkrasiaMuffin
Summary: This is the personal account of one of the survivors of the event that created the dystopian society that is being portrayed in the concept album "Danger Days - The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys" by My Chemical Romance.


*Authors note* This is a free interpretation of the concept associated with My Chemical Romance Danger Days - The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys. I am merely inspired. I do not own anything. *End of authors note*

_Spring 2019_

The attack was unexpected, the destruction massive. No one could really tell you the truth of what had happened on that March day 7 years ago. Of course there were theories and speculations; some said the Russians, some claimed the Middle East. Others were convinced that it was the Chinese and others told you about their conviction of the blame was the US government itself. There were even a few saying that it was aliens or God, or a collaboration of the two. Who it was does not really matter either; the damage is done and the world is a wasteland. The blasts hit all the major cities, instantly killing millions upon millions of innocents.

I was there on that day. It all happened so quickly. One moment I was living an all right life, worrying about the things all people worry about, and that is not expecting a nuclear holocaust. I was out alone in the garden enjoying a free afternoon and thinking about a history presentation I was doing with my mate, Cea, but I cannot for my life remember what it was about now. You could hint the appearance of some early buds picking their heads up from the ground and the soil smelled rich and fresh. The rain had just stopped, and the smell of early spring rain still lingered in the air. Then all of a sudden, it all changed. A blinding light appeared in the distance and although I was many, many miles away from any of the major cities attacked, I could feel the ground shaking and far off I could see the city you would now recognize as Dead Point 3E, being eaten by the lilac flames and over it seeing the formation of the giant flaming mushroom cloud. As the flames of the city rose higher into the air I got a nagging feeling that there is something very wrong going on. I almost feel ashamed now over my semi-blasé reaction, but it was too hard to grasp. I saw a city on fire! I would never have imagined that morning when I woke up, that by three o'clock the same afternoon I would see a city burn to crisps and all hell would break loose. I did not even realize then, watching the blazing city, that what I saw would change the world forever.

Standing there, speechlessly watching the catastrophe unfolding before my eyes, I was hit by the first shockwave, knocking me of my feet onto the flowerbed. I lost my breath and couldn't inhale any air. Lying there on the wet soil looking up into heaven I saw the heaven shift colour, from that clear spring blue to green, pink, purple. I did not know what to make of it, but my anxiety grew into alarm and full-blown fear. I am not certain if I was breathing, but I painfully got up and alarmingly looked around for someplace to hide. Our garden was large and there were holes in the ground where my kid sister's new playhouse was about to be built. In my panic I remembered my sister and my parents. Where were they? I ran into the house, searching for them. They were nowhere to be found. I didn't know where else to look. Tears were running down my cheeks and I cried their names out in agony: Sandra, Ted, Mia. I ran out into the driveway. The car was gone. I could not get hold of them. I desperately took out my cell phone and tried dialling, but in vain; the network was down. With a racing panic I ran into the house and tried the stationary phone. Same result. I had to face the fact: I could not get hold of my family. There was nothing I could do.

With tears still running down my cheeks, being unable to stop crying, I ran into the garden again. The mushroom cloud appeared much bigger now and the ground was still shaking. I needed to find a shelter, somewhere to hide. I dashed towards one of the holes for the playhouse and looked down. It was very deep and almost big enough for me to hide in. I started frenetically digging with my bare hands trying to make the hole bigger. I got dirt under my nails, small peddles cut my hands. Soon my hands were bleeding and my fingers were torn. I was all sweaty, but I could see in the corner of my eye the threatening cloud coming closer. Finally, the hole was big enough. I grabbed a nearby tile of the tin roof for the house, jumped in the hole and covered the top with the tile. There were slots that I quickly filled with torn pieces of my jacket. I did not know what affect the air of the cloud would have on me, so I tied the scarf I had been wearing over my mouth and nose, just in case. I am happy I did. I have heard about people suffocating in seconds on the dust. The scarf probably saved my life. As many other factors did.

It was very cramped and my arms got stuck in front of my chest. I had put my phone in my bra so not to drop it. I checked the time. It had been 3 minutes since the explosion. I was beside myself so to calm down I started singing Smile for myself. Although it is really a horrible piece of lyric that tells me to hide my sadness and true emotions behind a mask, it has also always made me smile. I sang it once, I sang it twice. The third time I sang it through, I could hear panic and screams out on the street. I covered my ears and continued. I could hear debris hitting my roof and the air was harder to breath. I moved the singing to my head and continued. When I had sung it through eight times my head started to get a little dizzy and all of a sudden I was not singing anymore. I had passed out.

I came to a while later. I was still grasping my phone and according to it, it had been around three hours since the burning and the explosion. My legs had fallen asleep, but I did not want to get up above ground. The noises had ceased by now. I couldn't even hear the birds sing. I couldn't hear any wind going through the leaves of the trees. I was way to quiet for my comfort, and I decided to stay in the pit.

My poor legs were woken up, and the pins and needled were awfully painful. The walls were pressing close against me and I remember thinking that I am lucky not to be claustrophobic. Then the fear and despair came over me again. I was stuck under ground, and would be, for God knows how long. I had no idea where my family was or if they were dead or not. My friends, Cea, all could be dead. I had no way of contacting the outside world, unless the network got up again, which was unlikely. And if it got up again, I would still be underground, and would probably not get any connection anyway. And I would run out of battery pretty soon, as well. At this through I turned it off, to save the battery best I could. I didn't actually know what had happened out there, except that it was awful, and I shouldn't get out. I had no food or anything to drink. I had no bathroom…

I realized that I had to take care of the last problem first. If I was to stay here I had to do something. I pushed lightly against the wall and it sank inwards, ever so slightly. I pushed again harder, and it moved a bit more. I pushed again and it moved. I continued and soon I could lift my bloody hands away from my face and around my torso and top of my legs. At least it was something. I continued pushing and in a little bit, I could turn around on the spot. It was a start.

I do not have any real knowledge in architecture or building things, but I am not daft. I know that if I undermine earth enough it will eventually fall in, which is rather counter productive to my plans of survival. But I pushed and dug as far as I dared. The soil was at times really easy to dig and sometimes a horrible challenge, but I managed. I dropped the soil on the ground stomping it with my boots creating a hard dirt floor. Whilst I was digging I found beetles, worms, ants and other insects as well as some roots that looked edible. Since I didn't have any other food, I crushed the insects and put them in my pocket with the roots, for later. I continued my building and after a while I had a slightly cone shaped space with a 120 cm diameter at the broadest place, the bottom. I had left a small space to the side, which would be my bathroom. Perhaps not the Ritz, but it's always something. I had collected a whole bunch of roots and insects. At least they seemed to have survived this catastrophe. Well, at least until I came along.

I had been so preoccupied with my project that I had forgotten the time completely. I turned on my phone to take a look. The sudden light from the phone blinded me and I couldn't see for several minutes. When my vision finally returned I was in for a new shock: 7 hours! I had been working for 7 hours! There were still no network and I turned off the phone. But the realisation that it had been so long since I last ate was not good. My stomach gave a roar of disapproval and started aching. I sat down on my newly made floor and picked up the first thing I got hold off in my pocket: a beetle. There was no light, not since the phone was off, but I could imagine how it looked. I hesitated, but my stomach hurt so bad that I just put the dead beetle in my mouth and swallowed. I could taste soil and some salty slimy substance. But it wasn't too bad. I took up the next thing, which was a worm. I put it in my mouth and chewed a bit on it. It was not to bad, if you got passed the soil taste and consistency. I tried a root, and it was hard to chew and taste bitter and soil as well. I knew I couldn't eat too much, since I didn't have anything else. Then it struck me: if I leave one of those insects on the floor, there might come other animal that will try to eat it. If I am still enough it might work. But how will I know if they are there? I am practically blind down here and I can't waste battery. And it would probably scare them off as well. I sat quietly and thought about it. Then it struck me: I would hear it. When an insect broke through the walls the soil will fall down and I will hear that.

I put one of my beetles on the floor and waited. And I was quite right. If I was quiet and still, almost on the brink of not breathing, I heard the insects break through the wall. But every time I tried to catch them, they always managed to run away. They were quick and experienced. I was blind. But what I did was that I tore a piece of my destroyed jacket and put the beetle on it, next to me. This was much more successful; I heard them break through; I learned to hear the infinitely faint sound when they moved across my floor and the disappearance of the sound when they stepped on to the piece of fabric. After waiting five seconds I hit my hand on the bug, beetle or ant that had come to feast and the dinner was mine. It was tedious and required massive patience, but I perfected the technique.

Those were my days. I slept when I was tired, I went to my bathroom when I needed and all other time I spent hunting. I cannot even begin to describe the smell in there, but I managed, I survived. Every now and again I turned on my phone and checked the time. I didn't know how long I should stay down there. I decided that whenever I could hear the first signs of life from outside I would go up and see.

I tried not to think of anything except my hunting, but sometimes my fear for the lives of my family and friends broke through and my heart felt like it would explode. I hated every second of my moist existence under ground. Thinking back now, I realize I that I was extremely lucky my hands weren't infected and I didn't fall ill, considering the lack of sanitary and my bad personal hygiene.

So one day, during my constant hunting session, I heard something that resembled a bird. I jolted up and listened harder. Had I just imagined that? Was it just a dream? I listened hard. I didn't even dare to breath. My heart beat so loud in hope i crossed my fingers and listen for all my might! And there it was again! It was a bird! Distant and muffled, but it was a bird! I had never felt happier in my entire life and I jumped up. Or I tried to jump up. I had been stationary in my hunting position and the minimal movement from it to the bathroom and bed position, that my muscles weren't really able to function. I got terrified. Why hadn't I thought of that? If I couldn't move, how would I get out? I tried hitting my legs. It didn't feel much, but at least I hadn't paralysed myself, as I had feared. I tried again, slower to get up. It didn't really work. I tried again, failed, and got out of breath. Now I was angry. I was going to make it. I wouldn't die in my own prison, among bugs and ants. I tried again, and tears started rolling down my cheeks. But I did not stop. The pain was excruciating, but I did not stop. I was coming up. I was almost standing, and I pushed hard against the wall to my back. I was up! My legs were shaking, but I was standing. Just above my head was the tile and pieces of cloth. I pulled my scarf closer around my face and pushed at it. It hardly moved. I pushed again, harder, locking my knees so to prevent me from falling again. I pushed and pushed and for the first time in a very long time, I could see light. Real light, that did not come from my phone. I was blinded by the intensity, but I did not stop. I pushed again, and I could hear the debris sliding of the tilted tile. I could taste blood in my mouth; I think I was biting my lip hard. I pushed again and the tile lifted. The light had blinded me completely but I continued. And in one massive forcing attempt the lid was off. I was free!

Although I was out of my prison, the dangers were not over. They had only just begun. But I have to tell you more about that some other time.

Signing off

/ Wondrous Alice


End file.
